Members of the Sarupathar Chambers of Commerce felicitate station superintendent Rajat Chowdhury. Picture by Ritupallab Saikia

Golaghat, Oct. 15: A Delhi-bound train, Avadh Assam Express, halted for two minutes for the first time at Sarupathar station in Sarupathar town, the headquarters of Dhansiri subdivision of Golaghat district.

Various organisations of the town, including Sarupathar Chambers of Commerce, All Assam Students Union and the people here have been demanding the stoppage of long-distance trains like Brahmaputra Express, Avadh Assam Express, Jana Shatabdi Express and Chennai Express.

“We thank the Northeast Frontier Railway authority for their endeavour for giving a stoppage of Avadh Assam Express. We have also demanded that a statue of freedom fighter Kushal Konwar be put up and a children’s park to be constructed at site of the train derailment for which he was sentenced to death by hanging in 1942,” said Sumant Chowdhury, general secretary of Sarupathar Chambers of Commerce.

When the train arrived at the station at 3.16pm Dinesh Bhilwaria, executive member of the traders’ body felicitated the station superintendent Rajat Chowdhury with a gamosa and offered him sweets. The traders’ body also felicitated the guard and the travelling ticket examiner of the train and handed them a letter of thanks to be given to the general manager and divisional manager of NF Railway.

Sarupathar station, established in the pre-Independence period, is the only railway station in Dhansiri subdivision and caters to nearly two lakh people of the area. Prior to Avadh Assam, only the Calcutta-bound Kamrup Express has a stoppage at the station.